CYPRUS: M/V MONCHEGORSK STILL LOITERING OFF

S E C R E T NICOSIA 000073 SIPDIS DEPARTMENT FOR P, EUR, NEA, ISN E.O. 12958: DECL: 01/27/2019 TAGS: PARM PREL MNUC SY IR CY SUBJECT: CYPRUS: M/V MONCHEGORSK STILL LOITERING OFF LARNACA REF: A. NICOSIA 58 ¶B. ANKARA 3 Classified By: Ambassador Frank C. Urbancic, Reasons 1.4 (b),(d) ¶1. (S) Ship status: U.S. Navy sources report at 1500 hrs local (0800 hrs DC) that the M/V Monchegorsk is holding position some 60 nautical miles southeast of Larnaca. ¶2. (C) Diplomatic activity since last update (Ref A): Following EUR Assistant Secretary Daniel Fried's telephone call to RoC Presidential Commissioner George Iacovou, RoC Diplomatic Coordinator Leonidas Pantelides telephoned the Ambassador at 1845 hrs January 27 to inform that the Monchegorsk was no longer steaming toward Latakeia, Syria, but rather was loitering 60 miles from Larnaca, awaiting further instructions. ¶3. (C) At 1000 hrs January 28, the Ambassador telephoned Pantelides for an update, learning that the vessel had not moved overnight. The parties to the incident "were speaking through their lawyers," the RoC diplomat noted, attempting to determine their next steps. Further, he had been informed that the ship had been told to be prepared to proceed to port (Note: we have transcribed Pantelides's fuzzy, passive voiced language verbatim.) The Ambassador asked Pantelides which port in Cyprus would receive the Monchegorsk; he replied that it had not yet been decided. ¶4. (C) The Ambassador highlighted recent media reporting that Turkey, in a similar case, had detained a suspect Iranian shipment allegedly heading to Venezuela (Ref B). Pantelides sounded intrigued and asked that we forward the press pieces. Ambassador also offered to share, and Pantelides accepted, declassified/releasable photographs of the Monchegorsk's cargo taken during the USN's earlier boarding. Finally, the Ambassador repeated earlier offers of U.S. assistance in the matter and urged Pantelides to request an independent cargo inspection conducted by Cypriot military and/or security officials, once the vessel reaches port. Urbancic